THE cost of President Mugabe's land grab of white farms became
apparent yesterday with an official forecast that next year's tobacco crop, the
mainstay of the economy, will fall by at least 30 per cent.
Tim Henwood, president of the Commercial Farmers' Union,
told its annual congress that the land crisis was 'threatening the future of
every Zimbabwean' Fuel shortages, price rises and huge job
losses have caused simmering discontent in Harare's black townships. Economists
say that Mr Mugabe's planned seizure of 3,270 white farms, almost three quarters
of the total, will plunge Zimbabwe still deeper into recession.
If the president presses ahead, fewer than 800 white farms
will survive and the great majority of tobacco farms - the largest single export
earner - will be seized. The Zimbabwe Tobacco Association predicted that next
year's crop would plunge to about 167,000 tons.
Unofficial
forecasts are even more pessimistic, putting the fall at 50 per cent. The
forecast came as the white farmers' leader said they would launch a Supreme
Court challenge to the land grab in a final effort to halt what he termed "the
collapse of our nation".
Dropping his conciliatory approach,
Tim Henwood, president of the Commercial Farmers' Union, told its annual
congress that the land crisis was "threatening the future of every Zimbabwean".
He accused the government of reneging on pledges to evict
the squatters who are illegally occupying more than 1,100 properties and said:
"That is why the CFU has to return to the Supreme Court to represent all the
farmers affected by the government's decision to compulsorily acquire over 3,000
commercial farms.
"This class action will specifically
challenge the power to take land from an individual without compensation." The
farmers on Mr Mugabe's hit-list are being refused bank loans. Many have been
unable to prepare a crop for next year and are being forced to lay off black
workers.
Jerry Grant, deputy director of the CFU: "We now
stand to lose the entire farming season unless a pragmatic land reform exercise,
which everyone in the industry subscribes to, is implemented quickly. At this
rate, we are throwing the whole sector into turmoil."
Mr
Mugabe is under immense pressure to reward his supporters after his narrow
victory in June's parliamentary election. Many of the 1,952 farms listed for
seizure so far are owned by prominent supporters of the opposition Movement for
Democratic Change. One farmer on the hit-list said: "It's a retribution list and
it reads like a who's who in the MDC."
John Robertson, an
economist, said that the farms on the hit-list employed more than 250,000 people
and contributed at least £600 million to the economy. He said: "Zimbabwe has
only a few weeks to reverse the possibility of the total collapse of its
economy."
Zimbabwe's President Robert Mugabe has railed against critics of his land reform
plan and said he will not back down from a campaign to take away farms from
descendants of white British colonialists and give it to impoverished
blacks.
"Our conscience is clear. We will not go back. We shall continue
to effect economic and social justice for all our people without fear or
favour," he said in a speech to the UN Millennium Summit of world
leaders.
President Mugabe has come under fire for his land reform plan,
in which veterans of the war that ended white rule in 1980 have led violent mobs
to occupy more than 1,600 white-owned farms since February.
About 4,000
whites own one-third of the fertile farmland, where 2 million farm workers and
their family members live. About 7.5 million people live on the other
two-thirds.
The president used the international forum to defend his
policies and blast critics.
"We have sought to redress this inequity
through a fast track land reform and resettlement programme," he
said.
"And what has been the response from some interested quarters?
Their response has been staggering beyond description. My country, my
government, my party and my person are labeled 'land grabbers', demonised,
reviled and threatened with sanctions in the face of accusations of
reverse-racism," he told the UN General Assembly.
While in New York for
the summit, President Mugabe was served with a civil lawsuit filed in US
District Court alleging that he orchestrated a campaign of violence to keep his
political party in office, The Washington Post reported on its
website.
The plaintiffs, who filed the case under a 211-year-old US law
that allows foreigners to sue for violations of international law, include
relatives of three people slain and a political opponent who claims she was
attacked. The lawsuit seeks about $400 million in damages, the Post
reported.
The US Senate is considering a bill to force Zimbabwe to pay
off its debt to the United States and suspend US aid unless law and order is
restored and property that was held before January is returned.
Zimbabwe minister snubs farmers -- UK BBC Mugabe's version of Mao's Cultural
Revolution -- Zim Daily News Leader Government struggles to complete airport
-- Zim Daily News Fast-track land reform exercise could hit snag -- Zim Daily
News Bikita, Gutu villagers invade more farms -- Zim Daily News Biggie
Chitoro in court for arson -- Zim Daily News Hungwe attacks fast-track land
reform exercise -- Zim Daily News Hunzvi's antics leave Parliament stunned --
Zim Daily News Parliament Mafudze threatens Hunzvi -- Zim Daily News
Parliament Hunzvi walks out as AG reports on War Fund -- Zim Daily
News
_________________________________________
BBC Thursday, 7
September, 2000, 17:51 GMT 18:51 UK
Zimbabwe minister snubs
farmers
Nearly 700 CFU members waited in vain for the speech By BBC's
Grant Ferrett in Harare
The annual Congress of Zimbabwe's Commercial
Farmers Union ended in confusion on Thursday after the minister for land and
agriculture failed to attend to deliver his traditional
address.
Nearly 700 delegates who had gathered for the meeting in Harare
appeared surprised and disappointed that the minister, Joseph Made, did not
turn up.
The delegates suggested calling on the UK to intervene, or to
appeal for the services of an international arbitrator such as the former
South African President, Nelson Mandela.
On Wednesday, the farmers
announced that they had resumed their legal challenge to the government's
attempts to seize their land without compensation.
Minister's
calendar
The union President, Tim Henwood, said it was the first time in
living memory that the relevant minister had failed to speak to the
conference.
Addressing the two day event is traditionally one of the most
important events of the minister's calendar.
Mr Henwood suggested
ironically that perhaps the minister had a more pressing
engagement.
But relations between the mainly white farmers' union and the
government have deteriorated sharply since President Mugabe and his ministers
gave official backing to the illegal occupation of commercial farms in
the run-up to parliamentary elections in June.
Survival
plan
The failure to evict squatters, combined with a listing of thousands
of white owned farms for redistribution to government supporters,
threatens to completely undermine the entire economy.
Commercial
agriculture is the backbone of the Zimbabwean economy, earning more foreign
currency and employing more workers than any other sector.
Faced with
a breakdown in the rule of law, and a refusal to enforce court orders, the
farmers are desperately trying to formulate a survival plan.
But their
biggest problem, as they were reminded when the land and agriculture minister
failed to show up for their annual congress is that the government is not
listening.
---------------------------- The Daily Newspaper:
Zimbabwe 9/7/00 10:57:35 AM (GMT +2)
LEADER PAGE Thursday 7,
September
Mugabe's version of Mao's Cultural
Revolution
Op-ED
If history teaches any lesson it is that
"people never learn from history". The current lawlessness fostered by
rogue war veterans is synonymous to the 1965-71 Cultural Revolution in
China.
Like President Mugabe's farm invasions and reign of terror in
2000, Mao in 1965 introduced the cultural revolution to stop what he thought
were increasing reactionary tendencies in China. Both Mao and Mugabe's
intentions were to cow the opposition. In China, students and youths were
enlisted into Mao's Red Guard units across China to attack perceived
"capitalist roaders". Similarly, some war veterans, Zanu PF supporters and
unemployed youths have formed themselves into "Red Guard" units across
Zimbabwe to terrorise perceived anti-Zanu PF elements. The Red Guards in
China spread to industry, agriculture and the bureaucracy with Mao's blessing
just as war veterans have invaded and terrorized Zimbabweans with Mugabe's
blessing. In China, "reactionary" teachers and university lectures were
removed from the classroom and "reactionary" officials were marched in
the streets and given political "re-education" lessons. Similarly, war
veterans and Zanu PF militia have unleashed a reign of terror against
teachers, closing schools, abducting teachers and pupils for night pungwes,
toyi-toying and even raping them and destroying their property. Muchapera
Mabhunu, for example, abducted 25 pupils in Chitungwiza and detained them for
more than six hours at night during which they were treated to mbanje
smoking, rigorous toyi-toying and sexual harassment. The notorious Biggie
Chitoro closed many schools in Mberengwa district while other war veterans
elsewhere carried out similar activities. Joseph Chinotimba must be
remembered for the illegal allocation of stands in urban Harare while Black
Jesus is back from prison and currently busy illegally pegging land in
Masvingo. Mao, like Mugabe, envisaged the Red Guards (war veterans in
Zimbabwe) as becoming permanent organs of mass political power. By 1967
the Cultural Revolution had slipped out of the control of both the Communist
Party and Mao, just as war veterans have slipped out of Zanu PF and Mugabe's
control. The Red Guards seized power and shut down schools,
universities, factories and government offices in China. Similarly, war
veterans caused the breakdown of law and order in Zimbabwe by their terror,
land invasions and plundering of commercial farmers' property, particularly
livestock. Sooner or later they may move from farms, schools and illegal
land allocation to mines and factories in urban areas. It is from this
point of view that war veterans' brutality and terror must be condemned in
strongest terms as it is unjust and will never foster the development of
Zimbabwe. Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. A threat
to liberty anywhere is a threat to liberty anywhere. Liberty has no place for
prejudice or violence. All Zimbabweans must place tolerance at the centre of
all efforts to achieve national peace and progress. Tolerance encourages
dialogue where differences persist, understanding where suspicion exists and
co-operation where divisions have impaired development for too long. The
struggle for tolerance is the struggle for humanity itself and it
is incumbent upon all Zimbabweans to seek out and embrace what
fosters development and unites us. The land question is a test for
Zimbabwe. What is happening in Zimbabwe today may happen in Zimbabwe
tomorrow, and what the Zimbabwean government does today must set a precedent
for what it may have to do tomorrow. Zimbabwe will be judged by success or
failure of its handling of the farm invasions and the accompanying
lawlessness. While we are not opposed to land equity, we are perturbed by
war veterans' methods to establish such equity that currently has
promoted anarchy and lawlessness. The government, for political
expediency, has now adopted the so-called "fast-track" resettlement programme
which rests on slippery ground, operates on rusty machinery and is
doomed. No compromise can alter the cardinal and fundamental principle and
idea that war veterans and Zanu PF youths must be treated as any
other Zimbabweans. To treat war veterans as special is not only a serious
travesty of justice but also a woeful contradiction of the very dictates of
history. History moves in a particular logical direction, and in this
particular instance the logical direction is that eventually law and order
must be restored in Zimbabwe. The government must practise the democracy
enshrined in our Constitution rather than reflect a sectional outlook. It
is important to note that democracy flouted is democracy denied. Now has come
the time when we, as Zimbabweans, must articulate what we want, and put it
across to the rogue war veterans and from a position of strength begin to
say: "Gentlemen, this is where you are, this is where we are and this is what
we want." No group of people in Zimbabwe possesses the monopoly of
truth, intelligence and force. There is room for all of us at the rendezvous
of victory. In China, when the Red Guards got out of control, Mao was
forced to call in the army to restore order by disarming the Red Guards and
forcing students back to school and university. Several Red Guard leaders
were also arrested which further helped to quell the unrest and restore
order. While we appreciate the arrest of a few criminals, it is our
conviction that there are numerous criminals walking free and we wonder why
the police are not apprehending them. It is high time Mugabe considered
calling on our national army to arrest lawlessness in our beloved but sinking
country, as the police seem to have failed to do so. More importantly, the
arrest of the leaders of anarchy, lawlessness and terrorism such as Chenjerai
Hitler Hunzvi, Black Jesus, Border Gezi and Chinotimba, to mention only a
few, may help to quell the current unrest and restore order. Surely we
must learn from the Chinese cure to anarchy and lawlessness, and execute a
properly planned land resettlement plan as well as foster meaningful and
sustainable development. The rest of Zimbabwe views the lawlessness and
anarchy spearheaded by rogue war veterans as an unforgivable sin that cannot
be pardoned by civilized societies. We, therefore, urge war veterans and
Zanu PF militia as well as any other criminals to sit up and think
again.
----------------------------
The Daily
Newspaper::Zimbabwe 9/7/00 10:12:23 AM (GMT +2) NATIONAL NEWS Thursday 7,
September
Government struggles to complete airport
Political
Reporter
ZIMBABWE borrowed a whopping $3,7 billion to finance the
construction of the new Harare International Airport but it is failing to
raise $94,2 million to enable the project to be completed, a government
minister told Parliament yesterday.
The Minister of Transport and
Communications, Swithun Mombeshora, said the airport project was almost
complete but progress was being hampered by financial problems. Mombeshora
was responding to a question by Glen Norah MP,
Priscilla Misihairabwi-Mushonga on the sources of the funds for the project
and to state problems being faced in the financing to ensure the project
is completed. When Zimbabwe borrowed the $3,7 billion from three
international financiers, it was supposed to pay a 15 percent content on each
loan in both local and foreign currency with 85 percent to be met by
the financiers. The foreign currency was for the procurement of goods not
locally available and the local currency was for paying for local goods,
labour escalations and increase in sales
tax.
---------------------------
The Daily
Newspaper::Zimbabwe 9/7/00 10:20:39 AM (GMT +2) NATIONAL NEWS Thursday 7,
September
Fast-track land reform exercise could hit
snag
Painos Dakwa, Gweru
The fast-track land reform programme
could hit a snag in the low rainfall districts of Zvishavane and Mberengwa in
the Midlands province.
The two districts have a waiting list of more than
40 000 people who need to be resettled. Mberengwa and Zvishavane are in
semi-arid regions four and five whose agricultural yields are comparatively
low due to erratic rainfall patterns. In drought prone Mberengwa for
instance, there are only four commercial farms which are mainly ranches in a
district where 20 000 people are clamouring to be resettled. In Zvishavane,
15 000 are waiting to be allocated land on 10 commercial farms which have
small arable hectarage. The Governor for the Midlands is aware of the
shortage of arable land in the two districts. Msipa who launched the
fast-track programme at the 2 000-hectare Radway Farm in Mberengwa, said
several people would have to be settled outside the two districts. "We are
looking at identifying more commercial farms in Gweru, Kwekwe and Shurugwi
where we can accommodate the people from the two districts," Msipa
said. One villager suggested that the farm workers at Radway be given
priority for logistical reasons since they are already living on the
property. Others argued that the land should be shared among the villagers
and ex-freedom fighters who occupied the farm in March this year. As a
result, tension is running high among the 20 000 people who need to be
resettled in Mberengwa. Besides the shortage of farming land, some of the
villagers are demanding that funds be made available to enable them to go
into ranching. Although Rugare Gumbo, Mberengwa East Member of Parliament,
assured the villagers that this was only the first phase of the
resettlement programme, a number of them are sceptical on whether they would
benefit. Joyce Nyoni, one of the intended beneficiaries, said she would not
be willing to be moved from her ancestral home in Mberengwa to
distant areas like Kwekwe and Mberengwa. Jacob Mema from Zvishavane, says
all he needs is more land for farming and does not mind moving out of his
home area. Mberengwa which falls under ecological region five, receives
between 350mm to 500mm of rain while that for Zvishavane is between 450 - 600
mm during the rain season. If the smallholder farmers, farm workers,
ex-freedom fighters and others insist on cropping and ignore ranching, then
they will have to be relocated. Several boreholes and dams will have to be
opened on the acquired farms if those to be resettled are to engage in
meaningful agricultural activities. The Zimbabwe Farmers Union's Midlands
representative, Aaron Dondofema, said as the exercise gets underway, the
authorities should take into account the fact that 45 percent of the
province's supplies of beef comes from Mberengwa. Rapoko, sorghum and
groundnuts are the major crops cultivated in Zvishavane and
Mberengwa. Zvishavane produced cereals such as rapoko, mhunga and
horticulture and their contribution to the provincial basket was 28
percent. "Although the two districts are mainly ranching areas, they could
be developed by way of more boreholes and large-scale commercial dams
so that the farmers can venture into both cropping and ranching,"
Dondofema said. He said for a start, those to be resettled should identify
their needs pertaining to inputs and farming implements. "What the
beneficiaries need is support from agritex extension workers, workshops on
production and help from the government and donors to come up with a viable
and efficient farming programme." A situation where farmers in the two
districts will end up abandoning the commercial farming sectors should not be
allowed to happen," cautions Dondofema. The government has identified more
than 3 000 commercial farms for resettlement amid warning that the programme
could be the death knell to country's once viable agricultural sector if not
handled diligently.
------------------------------
The Daily
Newspaper::Zimbabwe 9/7/00 10:10:20 AM (GMT +2) NATIONAL NEWS Thursday 7,
September
Bikita, Gutu villagers invade more farms
Daily News
Correspondent, Masvingo
About 1 500 war veterans and villagers from
Bikita and Gutu districts of Masvingo moved into commercial farms in Masvingo
East during the past two days and started clearing huge tracts of land,
farmers in the area said yesterday. The invaders swooped onto Southwales
Estate, Bon Air, Marha, Yetorn, Sharlock and Dromore farms, all in Masvingo
East commercial farming area, and have threatened to forcibly remove owners
from their properties. Yesterday, they set Southwales Estate on fire as
part of their tillage preparations, putting about 2 000 head of cattle in
danger. "We are actually in a dilemma," said Osman Khan at the farm. "All
the pastures were destroyed and I do not know what to do with the
cattle. Chaos is reigning supreme and the squatters are busy erecting
houses. Police are reluctant to act." Fences around most farms in the area
were destroyed and cattle from the neighbouring communal areas are now
grazing in the farms.
------------------------------------
The
Daily Newspaper::Zimbabwe 9/7/00 9:29:14 AM (GMT +2) NATIONAL NEWS
Thursday 7, September
Biggie Chitoro in court for arson
Zerubabel
Mudzingwa, Gweru
Mberengwa war veterans' leader Wilson Kufa Chitoro, also
known as Biggie Chitoro, in custody for murder, kidnapping, robbery and
various other politically related crimes committed in Mberengwa during the
run-up to the June parliamentary election, appeared in court again
yesterday.
This time, he and two others were charged with burning down
Sekai Holland's car and kidnapping three officials from the Movement
for Democratic Change (MDC). Holland lost in her bid to represent
Mberengwa East in Parliament on an MDC ticket. Zanu PF's Rugare Gumbo is now
the MP for the constituency. Chitoro, 60, was remanded in custody to 20
September while his co-accused, Nyashadzashe Koke, 43, and Tavatangira
Dzingairai, 43, were released on $500 bail each by Zvishavane magistrate
Elizabeth Rutsate. In another case already before the courts, Chitoro is
being separately charged for the kidnapping and subsequent murder of Fainos
Kufazvineyi Zhou during the election campaign period. Gibson Sibanda of
Sibanda and Partners, a Zvishavane law firm, represented Chitoro and his
co-accused. The State alleges that sometime in March, Chitoro a Mberengwa
district chairman of the Zimbabwe National Liberation War Veterans'
Association addressed a meeting at Zeederberg Ranch where he allegedly
incited war veterans and Zanu PF youths to terrorise any known opposition
party supporters in the area. Dzingirai, as the base chairman, led some
youths and set up roadblocks on major roads. Travellers who failed to
produce Zanu PF cards at the roadblocks were severely tortured and forced to
join the ruling party. On 4 June, the car in which Holland and three senior
MDC officials Erasmus Matika, Simbarashe Muchemwa and Masimba Jeremani were
travelling broke down close to the war veterans' base. While trying to repair
the car, they were allegedly approached by Koke who offered to fix it
for them. When he failed to repair the car, Koke is alleged to have
gone back to the base and then returned a few minutes later in the company
of Dzingirai. Dzingirai then ordered the youths to kidnap Matika, Muchemwa
and Jeremani before setting Holland's pick-up truck car, worth $400 000,
on fire. Those kidnapped were severely assaulted throughout the night at
a notorious torture base named Gweshuro. Muchemwa, who managed to escape,
reported the matter to the police in Mberengwa. When the police arrived at
the farm, they were allegedly denied entry until after the intervention of
Chitoro. According to the State, Jeremani is still admitted at Bulawayo
United Hospitals. He is unable to talk due to injuries inflicted by the
war veterans.
--------------------------------- The Daily
Newspaper::Zimbabwe 9/7/00 10:30:20 AM (GMT +2) NATIONAL NEWS Thursday 7,
September
Hungwe attacks fast-track land reform exercise
Muchaneta
Muchenje
SILAS Hungwe, the president of the Zimbabwe Farmers' Union,
yesterday launched a scathing attack on the government, accusing it of being
only concerned with displacing commercial farmers and farm workers,
instead of allocating land to the needy.
Hungwe, previously considered
an uncritical supporter of government agricultural policies, spoke at a
workshop to create dialogue between the government and stakeholders on the
fast-track resettlement programme. Said Hungwe: "The government does not
say anything about supporting the resettled people. Its only aim is to
resettle them. Resettlement is not for people to have a home at which they
will be buried, but to change their lives for the better." Hungwe said he
believed it was useless to resettle people without giving them the necessary
support such as training. He criticised the fast track programme as an
"unplanned and flawed" programme, despite the government's efforts to make it
look right. The government wanted to be seen as doing the nation a favour but
was actually creating more problems through its rash programme, said
Hungwe. The workshop, attended by government officials and other
civic organisations, was organised for the women who feel marginalised in
the land programme An independent consultant, Unity Chari, said
the government should make public the policy document on land which she
said was silent on gender concerns. The Women and Land Lobby Group
co-ordinator, Abby Taka Mgugu, said although her organisation fully supported
land reform without proper infrastructure life was going to be very difficult
for the women.
------------------------------
The Daily
Newspaper::Zimbabwe 9/7/00 9:37:23 AM (GMT +2) PARLIAMENT Thursday 7,
September
Hunzvi's antics leave Parliament stunned
Political
Reporter
War veterans' leader, Dr Chenjerai Hunzvi, on Tuesday stunned
Parliament when he declared that the war veterans would return to war if
the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) assisted members of the
white minority to maintain their hold on land.
Making his maiden
speech in Parliament, Hunzvi accused MDC MPs of suffering from what he called
memory impairment. He then gave a long discourse on the colonial history of
Zimbabwe. All but nine MDC MPs walked out of the House as the MP for
Chikomba spoke and shouted slogans denouncing the MDC for working with the
white community. Clenching his fist and alternating between oratory and
dancing, Hunzvi applauded President Mugabe and the war veterans for working
to ensure the land acquisition programme continues, with hundreds of the
landless being resettled. "Whites are refusing to give us the land and the
MDC is also refusing because they are jealous," said Hunzvi as he recounted
the war of liberation. After Speaker Emmerson Mnangagwa extended Hunzvi's
speech time, he continued to attack the MDC saying its MPs suffered from what
he called "emptiosis and MDiosis". As the MDC MPs walked out of the House,
Hunzvi shouted: "Let the Rhodesians go out! It is a shame that the MDC is now
being supported by the former colonial settlers. They are running away
because they do not know their history." While the remaining MDC MPs told
Hunzvi that he was behaving irrationally, Zanu PF MPs urged him on, calling
him by his "Mhofu" totem. Bragging about his role in the land invasions,
he said the MDC MPs were sellouts, especially for supporting the white
commercial farmers and the recent work stayaway. He, however, said land
should be given to all Zimbabwean regardless of political affiliation, even
to members of the white community as long as they were permanent Zimbabwean
residents with citizenship. MDC MPs shouted him down, saying rival war
veterans' leader, Andy Mhlanga, was a better leader for the war
veterans.
----------------------------- The Daily
Newspaper::Zimbabwe 9/7/00 9:40:52 AM (GMT +2) PARLIAMENT Thursday 7,
September
Mafudze threatens Hunzvi
THE government must move with
speed to restore the rule of law or face popular unrest and disobedience it
may fail to control, Hilda Mafudze (MDC,Mhondoro) told Parliament on
Tuesday.
Mafudze, in her maiden speech, said the political violence
unleashed on ordinary citizens for supporting opposition parties before and
after the June election was not called for. She said the government must
move with speed to ensure law and order prevails for the good of the country.
She said it was saddening that war veterans and Zanu PF supporters were used
in the terror campaign to mobilize support for "desperate despotic rulers
whose sole objective was to stay in power, no matter what". "Two months
after the elections, these misguided elements are still continuing unabated
and this should not be tolerated," she said. "Those who supported it must
move with speed or face popular unrest and disobedience that no government
can control." At that point the war veterans' leader, Chenjerai Hunzvi (Zanu
PF, Chikomba), interjected: "Tinokurongera jambanja," which literally
means "We will organise violence against you." "Ndino kurova (I will beat
you up)," responded Mafudze. "People have been tortured, maimed and harassed
by the government for choosing to support a party other than Zanu PF. Mr
Speaker, is that democracy?"
----------------------------- The Daily
Newspaper::Zimbabwe 9/7/00 10:17:22 AM (GMT +2) NATIONAL NEWS Thursday 7,
September
Hunzvi walks out as AG reports on War Fund
Political
Reporter
THE Member of Parliament for Chikomba Dr Chenjerai Hunzvi walked
out of Parliament yesterday moments before the Minister of Justice, Legal
and Parliamentary Affairs, Patrick Chinamasa, responded to a
question relating to the defrauding of War Victims Compensation Fund of
millions of dollars in 1996.
Chinamasa told Parliament yesterday that
the Attorney General's office had completed work on the 21 dockets that will
lead to the prosecution of some of the people who abused and defrauded the
fund. Referring specifically to Hunzvi he said the war veteran leader was
already an accused facing trial before the courts. Chinamasa said the
dockets had been completed to allow trials to continue while others were
being considered for further investigations. He made these statements while
responding to a question from the Movement for Democratic Change MP for
Zengeza, Tafadzwa Musekiwa who wanted to know what steps were being taken to
ensure the speedy prosecution of senior Zanu PF government officials who had
defrauded the fund. The fund's coffers were emptied of about $4,5 billion
in less than six months prompting the government to launch investigations
into the manner in which the funds were
administered.
Satellite evidence of the land crisis in Zimbabwe Zim
Land
Thought you might find this
interesting - read on and then take a look at the attached satellite
photo.
Info. courtesy Malcolm
Kincaid-Smith.
WE SHOULD ALL BE VERY CONCERNED BY THIS IMAGE Satellite evidence of
the land crisis in Zimbabwe
Fig. 1 An enlarged part of the Africa mosaic showing Zimbabwe (courtesy of
Earth Satellite Corporation). Lake Kariba forms part of the border with Zambia
in the northwest. Note the Great Dyke which strikes through Zimbabwe from
north-northeast to south-southwest.
* Note the differences between commercial and
communal land.
The patches of light tones are severely
degraded. Darker tones indicate forested or fallow land. Crops appear light
pink. The degraded areas are all communal lands.
* See the contrast with surrounding countries.
Mozambique to the east is densely vegetated.
Zambia to the north is densely vegetated in spite of high population along
the line of rail north of Lake Kariba. Botswana to the south-east is drier
and naturally less vegetated, yet the communal lands along the Zimbabwe border
appear as more degraded.
Farmers
have been receiving notices to vacate their properties, in most cases after
having been issued Section 8 Compulsory Acquisition Orders.
All the notices to vacate have
given only 30 days notice.
These notices are NOT VALID as
Section 9 of the Land Acquisition Act 1992 as amended by S.I.148A of 2000
provides -
Section 9 (3) If the owner
or a usufructuary of land which has been acquired in terms of this Part is
occupying that land, he shall not be required to vacate that land unless at
least 3 months notice has been given to him.
If any specific response is
necessary by those farmers in receipt of such Notices to Vacate, it will be
contained in the Union brief on Monday 11th September 2000.
REGIONAL REPORTS
MASHONALANDCENTRAL
Mutepatepa - People from the Chiweshe communal
lands are causing obstructions to farm operations on Crewkerne Farm. They are
cutting trees and preventing the owner and his sons from moving around the
property. Police have been ineffective. War vets on Insingizi Farm have
refused to move so as to allow the owner to make a fire break. War vets are
building and cutting trees on Dundry Farm.
Horseshoe - Cattle are being slaughtered
by war vets on Rushpeak Farm.
Mazowe/Concession - War vets are building huts
outside the security fence on Amatola, and are suspected to have burnt grazing
lands.
MASHONALAND EAST
Marondera - Nothing to
report.
Marondera North
- Nothing to report.
Beatrice- War vet Mavingira told the labour of Argyle Ranch that they
were to attend a meeting in the Beatrice township. There were 21 people on
Marirangwe claiming land. 12-15 people, led by war vet Maddoch, went to Denby to
claim land. A Police vehicle from Mahusekwa escorted 5 of the war vets to the
farm using the excuse that they were helping Maddoch look for someone. He then
took them off the farm when he left. Joyce Mine: Occupiers are moving onto
Joyce Mine with scotch carts. There is continued pegging on Goldylands. War
vets moved onto Boch with a 3.5t truck full of furniture.
HarareSouth - There has been no field work done on Stoneridge since
Monday. Yesterday the boom at the gate was stolen and taken to the war vet camp.
There are another two houses being erected, and no response from the Police.
Occupiers on Blackfordby destroyed about 6ha of ridges. There has been no work
done on the farm since Wednesday. Wood cutting and house building continues on
Dunnotar. Some women started a fire deliberately on Kimcote in order to clear
land.
Wedza - Three
steers were slashed on Collace but are recovering. A calf was snared and is also
recovering. The water works to the paddocks are being tampered with. About 2km
of fencing was stolen from Saltash. There is an increase in poaching on
Chakadenga. There were three beasts stolen from Skoonveld but a Wedza Farm
Security Guard caught two cutting up two of the beasts and it was later found
out that the other one had already gone to Harare for selling. House building
and tree cutting continues on Fair Adventure. On Shaka two fires were started on
the farm.
Enterprise -
Nothing to report.
Bromley/Ruwa - The base camp commander on
Dunstan is wanted by the Police for the murder of a male, either a member of the
public or one of the members of the camp. The assailant who robbed Mrs.
Cullinan at gun point was found and her cell phone recovered. The assailant is
being detained at Chitungwisa.
Macheke/Virginia - A few people arrived to take
over Castledene Pines.
The Police were collected and taken to the farm and explained that the Section 8
Order had been lifted and the farm belonged to the owners.
MASHONALAND WEST NORTH
Bunya Farm was occupied on Wednesday 6
September.
MASHONALAND WEST SOUTH
Chegutu/Suri Suri - There was a work stoppage of paprika
planting on San Fernando on Tuesday by threatening war vets, which has now been
resolved. The owner of Leny Farm was given a three week eviction notice by
Government. Leny Farm has conceded but no valuators have visited it and no
agreement of sale has been reached. DDF are currently pegging. Irrigation pipes
and fencing are being stolen and poaching is rife. Chakari
- On Barcombe Farm the war veteran who attempted to murder the farm worker two
weeks ago is still at large. The worker is still in hospital and is unable to
speak although he has come out of the coma. On Rondor four workers received
death threats on Tuesday. On Newbiggin and Deweras war veterans were
interfering with land prep, and the owner of Deweras was told to vacate the
property and received threats. War veterans are busy building houses, cutting
fences and cutting down thousands of trees. On Blackmorvale cattle cannot be
moved into the grazing area due to war veterans burning it
and setting snares, in which two cattle have been caught.
On Montana approximately 40 new roofing sheets of corrugated iron
have been stolen and war vets that have been living in the cottage for some
months have given death threats if electricity is turned off.
Kadoma - Hut building continues on
Alabama and there has been much movement on and off several farms in the
district. People involved with using a Rio Tinto lorry to steal firewood from
Just Right have been arrested due to excellent reaction from Rio Tinto
management.
GENERAL - Four properties have
so far received Section
9 Orders which are date stamped 28 August and dated the 25 July.
None of these properties have had Government valuators or reached an
agreement of sale.
MASVINGO
Masvingo East and Central - Farm owners in this
area reported fresh occupations occurring on their properties. There is
continued tree cutting and clearing of land. There was a large veld fire on
Wondedzo and Ballihone farms. Kudu and impala had to flee. The homestead was in
danger, but guti rain put most of the fire out last night. Some farm owners are
receiving notices to vacate their farms by 27th September
2000.
Chiredzi - The situation remains the
same.
Mwenezi - The situation remains the
same.
Gutu/Chatsworth - The situation remains the
same.
Save
Conservancy - Cutting of trees, the pulling in of snares, and occupations by
war vets still continue on some properties. New peg lines have been put in on
the Angus Boundary.
MANICALAND
Headlands - On Ruanda Farm war vets have planted
maize in the tobacco ridges. There was a tense situation yesterday between the
war vets and farmers who arrived to give moral support to the
farmer.
MATABELELAND
WestNicholson - Sovelelel Ranch: On Tuesday 2 September 2000, 300
Zanu PF youths abducted one ZRP officer and one ranch game scout. A sergeant
from West Nicholson Police telephoned his Member in Charge, requesting support.
The MIC of contacted Gwanda, who denied support and told West Nicholson to
uplift the six ZRP details from the farm. On Wednesday 6 September arrests were
made. The two abductees are still missing.
MIDLANDS
Kwekwe - To date the
following properties have had fires started by occupiers: Loozani: 1500 ha
burnt Milsonia: 500 ha burnt Moyo Ranch: 5000 ha burnt Hunters Moon:
the bulk of this 2000 ha property was burnt Riverside: about $80 000 worth of
hay bales for the dairy were destroyed Sebakwe Farms: 500 ha burnt On
Milsonia 50 snares were picked up around where the occupiers are living, and
there was an attempted stocktheft. People from the resettlement area are moving
on to Bonwei and East Range. On Wednesday, a fire which started on Mvurachena
Farm and burnt the whole farm, spread on to Sebakwe and burnt a portion of that
and a portion of Borrowdale. It spread to Twin Springs and Bushy Park. No
assistance in fighting the fire was received from war
vets/occupiers.
MASS
DEMONSTRATION - Bulawayo - Saturday 9th
September
Please be assured that this
demonstration is going ahead.
The
party is definitely on for Saturday morning as
planned!
9:00 am, City Hall Car
Park
If you
can't attend, at least spread the word to build
morale!
MDC Support (Southern Region)
In this issue
:
"Some kind
of maniac" - NY Times
Mugabe
seeks help in Harlem - Times
Annan
reaches out - Star
DRC,
Zimbabwe massing troops - Reuters
'Worse than
depression' - N24
Empty
coffers - Star
ZFU attacks
land reform - DNews
From The New York Times, 6
September
Mugabe - who he?
Not many
New Yorkers have heard of Mugabe - and those that have "think he is some kind of
maniac".
The summit meeting
of world leaders got under way at the UN in New York. Kofi Annan, the UN
secretary-general, called the three-day conference a "defining moment for the
world's leaders and for the UN". To be sure, some of the world's most vexing
problems, from poverty to disease, will be debated by presidents, prime
ministers, kings, and crown princes. Discussions began among four African
presidents on Zimbabwe's troubled land reform programme. More than 700 other
meetings, dealing with issues aound the world, are expected to
follow.
In Harlem, the
Friends of Zimbabwe pressed ahead with a publicity campaign - but there was a
funeral across the street which drew a bigger crowd. Roger Wareham, a Brooklyn
lawyer, unveiled a poster of President Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe at the Mount
Olive Baptist Church on Malcolm X Boulevard. The Rev. Charles Curtis, pastor of
the church, spoke of an international political and media campaign to discredit
Mr Mugabe. And Amadi Ajamu, the group's publicity chief, handed out a press
release announcing the Zimbabean president's appearance tomorrow night at the
church, a sort of coming-out party for the African leader. "The problem is that
he is not really well known in the black community," Mr Wareham said. "People
know Fidel," he said of Mr Castro, "but if they've heard of Mugabe in the
mainstream media, they think he is some kind of maniac."
From The Times (UK), 8
September
Mugabe seeks help in
Harlem
NEW YORK - President Mugabe, not perhaps the most popular of
the world leaders gathered for the UN summit, went looking for a warmer welcome
in Harlem last night. The Zimbabwean leader, mired in the international row over
a land resettlement programme that has frequently erupted into violence and has
cost the lives of at least three white farmers, was speaking at a church that
has hosted other controversial black leaders, including Louis Farrakhan, the
Nation of Islam leader. American supporters of Mr Mugabe were estimating a crowd
of up to 1,500 at Mount Olivet Baptist Church. But the reaction to the arrival
of the veteran ruler was more one of bemusement than anything else. Very few
African Americans seemed to have a clue who he was.
Behind the counter at Louise's Family Restaurant, a few doors
from the church on Malcolm X Boulevard, Marvin Wilson said that he was going to
hear Mr Mugabe speak despite being unsure of his identity. "He's the President
of . . . of . . . Oh, man! I was just reading about him in the paper," he said.
"He's the man!" said Jim King, but despite his chuckling he couldn't say which
man he was. "It says on the posters he returns home to Harlem," said Loretta
Smith. "But I don't see how it's that. Nobody really knows who he is." Nobody
appeared to know, either, about the deaths and maimings during the Zimbabwe land
seizures. "The problem is that he is not really well known in the black
community," said Roger Wareham, a lawyer involved in Friends of Zimbabwe, who
were organising the event. "People know Fidel [Castro] but if they've heard of
Mugabe in the mainstream media they think he is some kind of maniac."
With the US Congress considering imposing economic sanctions on
Zimbabwe, Mr Mugabe was seeking to drum up American support. "He's come under
what we believe are unfair attacks as he attempts to correct what's really
historical injustice in his country," Mr Wareham said. "Mugabe wants to be able
to speak directly to the black community, because he's always been a
pan-Africanist in believing in close ties between Africa and the diaspora." The
Rev Charles Curtis, pastor of Mount Olivet, said that the West was simply
reluctant to see Africans control their own land. "I don't quite understand the
moral conflict which seems to arise when indigenous people or African people
take charge of their land," he said.
From The Star (SA), 7 September
Annan reaches out to help Mugabe
United Nations - UN Chief Kofi Annan has
given Zimbabwe an escape route out of a deepening land crisis threatening to
close its economy, but analysts are waiting to see if President Robert Mugabe
will play ball. And leaders from Africa, like those from the rest of the world
at the UN Millennium Summit in New York, are watching to see how Mugabe
navigates the explosive land issue, a legacy of colonialism.
Black Zimbabwean war veterans have occupied
thousands of white-owned farms across the country since February, fighting what
they see as a battle against lingering colonial injustice. At least 31 people,
including 26 opposition activists and five white farmers, were killed during the
farm invasions and in a wave of violence across Zimbabwe before a general
election in June that Mugabe's ruling ZANU-PF narrowly won. The violent land
seizures have put Mugabe on a collision course with former colonial power
Britain and almost the entire international community.
But in talks in New York on Tuesday
requested by African leaders, led by South Africa's Thabo Mbeki, Annan gave
Mugabe an escape route. The UN secretary-general gave Mugabe conditional support
for his controversial land reform programme but said Harare must first settle
differences with Britain and other key Western donors who underwrite crucial aid
to Zimbabwe. "It was the best Annan could do. The ball is now in President
Mugabe's court," a senior UN official said. It's really up to him. He can seize
the chance, open up dialogue with donors and return Zimbabwe to normality, or he
can throw it away and plunge his country into an irreversible crisis," the
official added.
Mbeki said he was confident that Zimbabwe's
land crisis would now be amicably resolved. "I am confident that we are now
moving in the right direction, that we will be able to resolve this issue," he
said. Under the deal hammered out with Annan, with massive input from Mbeki,
Mugabe was asked to draw up a multimillion-dollar land reform plan which could
be shared with donors. Annan moved a step further and directed the UN
Development Programme to assist Harare with technical details, plans and
strategy. Diplomats said Annan's moves were a partial coup for Mugabe and gave
him a decent way out of a crippling economic and political crisis facing his
agriculture-driven nation.
Zimbabwe's economy is on the sickbed.
Foreign reserves are virtually depleted, unemployment is at a record 50 percent
and rising, inflation is at 60 percent, and interest rates are hovering at 70
percent. To keep the momentum, sources said, Mbeki separately engaged British
Prime Minister Tony Blair on the matter. He even took both men, who have frosty
relations and have not met since last November, to dinner. "One hopes this is
the start of the end of the Zimbabwean crisis and that sense will finally
prevail," a European diplomat said.
Some diplomats at the Millennium Summit
expect Mugabe to abandon his militant approach after the talks with Annan and
try to win back crucial donor support lost over the land policy and Zimbabwe's
role in the civil war in the Democratic Congo. Donors, led by Britain, say they
will not renew aid until Zimbabwe restores order on the export-earning farms and
quits the ruinous Congo war. London has insisted that $67-million in funding for
land reform be tied to the departure of the veterans from the farms and the
putting of change onto a willing-seller-willing-buyer basis. Without donor
support, Mugabe has little chance of solving a severe fuel and foreign currency
crisis and taming runaway inflation, economists say.
From Reuters, 7
September
Congo Rebels Say Government Massing
Troops
UNITED NATIONS - Congolese rebels said on Thursday the
government in Kinshasa was massing troops on two fronts in readiness for a major
offensive as world leaders gathered in New York to discuss peacekeeping in
Africa. Rebel leader Bizima Karaha, whose claims could not be independently
verified, told Reuters that government troops backed by allies from Zimbabwe had
moved to positions outside the towns of Ikela and Mbandaka and that intelligence
indicated they were preparing for an assault on rebel positions. ``They are
getting ready for a major attack. We have so far detected movements of six
battalions,'' Karaha said. ``We fear the resumption of a full-scale war is about
to happen,'' Karaha said on the sidelines of a U.N. Millennium Summit in New
York. ``No wonder the government of (President Laurent) Kabila is refusing to
implement peace accords in the country. They have other plans and our only
option is to defend ourselves.''
The rebel claims came a day after Congo's foreign minister,
Yerodia Ndombasi, said a deal signed in the Zambian capital, Lusaka, in 1999 to
end the war in Africa's third-largest country cannot be implemented until the
U.N. compels Burundian, Rwandan and Ugandan troops backing rebels to withdraw.
Karaha, a former foreign minister-turned rebel, said the United Nations summit
should make special note of the government moves and use its influence to
prevent fresh fighting. ``The Congolese people are tired of fighting and want
peace. We are also ready for peace, for negotiating on a new system for our
country but we will defend ourselves at all costs,'' he said.
From News24 (SA), 8
September
Zim 'worse off than in
Depression'
Harare - Zimbabwe's top private banking official made it clear
on Thursday that any farmer whose land is listed by President Robert Mugabe's
government for seizure will not be eligible for farming loans. Greg
Brackenridge, chairman of the Bankers' Association of Zimbabwe, told 450
delegates at the congress of the CFU that the country's financial situation was
"a bloody mess", following the last eight months of violence and harassment by
war veterans who have invaded about 1700 farms. The banking sector was
"absolutely unified ... on the need for the restoration of law and order," he
said.
Brackenridge, chief executive in Zimbabwe of the South
African-based Stanbic bank, said banks were reluctant to provide farmers with
loans if there was no certainty that crops would be reaped. Up to 70 percent of
commercial farmers could be deprived of finance if the government took over the
3000 farms it has vowed to confiscate. He said the country was worse off than it
had been during the 1930 world-wide depression. Economists said the economic
collapse was dramatically accelerated by the listing so far of 1952 properties
for confiscation without fair compensation, and the government had warned that
it intended to list another 200 farms.
Jerry Grant, the union's deputy director, said the upheaval on
farms had cost farmers a total of ZD430 million (US6 million) since February
when the invasions began. Farmers had shelved capital expenditure plans worth
ZD2.2 billion (US44=20 million) because of the violence and uncertainty. Grant
said the union was collecting information on incidents on farms and would take
action for reparations "once sanity returns to our nation." The union announced
on Wednesday that it was relaunching a challenge in the Supreme Court to try and
stop the seizures. In August, it withdrew its first attempt to fight the
government on the issue but has reinstated it after outraged reaction from
farmers.
From The Star (SA), 8
September
Zim peers into empty coffers for
state wages
Harare - The Zimbabwean government has run out of money and the 140 000-plus
public servants could go without wages from the end of this month unless the
country increases its borrowings or prints more money, say authoritative
sources. Treasury sources say funds for the public servants' salaries ran out in
June, and money to pay the July and August salaries was drawn only through
expenditure cuts by ministries. Apart from printing money, the sources say the
only other realistic option is for the government to increase its borrowings
from the domestic banking sector and add more pressure on interest rates, which
currently stand at 56 percent.
Economists say that only massive injections of donor money will arrest
the economic decline. However, the international community has slashed aid to
Zimbabwe until veterans are moved off the farms, law and order is re-established
and farmers are fully compensated. An IMF team was in Harare to assess the
economy but there were no talks about financial assistance. Zimbabwe has been
cut off from balance of payments support almost continuously for four years
because of the government's failure to stick to IMF prescriptions for economic
recovery and Mugabe's repeated attempts to seize white-owned land without fair
compensation. United Nations secretary general Kofi Annan met Mugabe in New York
on Tuesday this week and gave him guarded support for land reform, if the
government implemented "a credible programme." The government says it plans to
resettle people on what it calls its "fast track programme". Settlers will be
moved onto white farms with no start-up support other than water supplies, but
critics say the programme will drive the new settlers into worse poverty than
they currently endure.
From The Daily News, 7
September
Hungwe attacks fast-track land
reform exercise
SILAS Hungwe, the president of the Zimbabwe Farmers' Union,
yesterday launched a scathing attack on the government, accusing it of being
only concerned with displacing commercial farmers and farm workers, instead of
allocating land to the needy. Hungwe, previously considered an uncritical
supporter of government agricultural policies, spoke at a workshop to create
dialogue between the government and stakeholders on the fast-track resettlement
programme. Said Hungwe: "The government does not say anything about supporting
the resettled people. Its only aim is to resettle them. Resettlement is not for
people to have a home at which they will be buried, but to change their lives
for the better."
Hungwe said he believed it was useless to resettle people
without giving them the necessary support such as training. He criticised the
fast track programme as an "unplanned and flawed" programme, despite the
government's efforts to make it look right. The government wanted to be seen as
doing the nation a favour but was actually creating more problems through its
rash programme, said Hungwe. The workshop, attended by government officials and
other civic organisations, was organised for the women who feel marginalised in
the land programme.
(A few words of explanation for those outside Zimbabwe - the
ZFU represents mostly black commercial farmers, the CFU has a mostly white
membership)
We have been appealing, over the
last few day, for readers to express their sentiments on the Bill currently
before the US House of Representatives. We now have a huge pile of messages
which people have sent in to us, which we will be couriering over to the House
International Relations Committee.
BUT THE MORE, THE MERRIER -
SO PLEASE KEEP THEM COMING
If you have not already sent a
message, please take time to do so. You can either send direct to the House
International Relations Committee (addresses below), or just send a message to
us (at ironhorse@intonet.co.uk)
and we will forward it in printed form to the office of the committee. Or you
could do both.
The Bill which is currently before
the US House of Representatives does NOT, as the Zimbabwe government has been
arguing, mean the immediate start of Cuba-style sanctions against Zimbabwe if it
is passed. What is does do is lay down incentives for the government to return
to the rule of law, and also provide for certain penalties if this is not
done. The provisions of this Bill are too numerous to go into here, but if
anyone wishes to receIve a copy of the Bill, just ask and we will send one to
you. It is a "shot across the bows" - intended to state loudly and clearly that
the behaviour of President Mugabe and the Zimbabwe government is
unacceptable.
AN EDITED VERSION OF OUR
INITIAL APPEAL FOLLOWS :
As you are probably aware, the
Zimbababe Democracy 2000 Bill is currently before the US House of
Representatives for consideration. As you are probably also aware, the Zimbabwe
government has been actively lobbying against the possible passing of this Bill
into US law. This bill covers many topics, but the main thrust of it is to
provide both carrots and sticks for the current Zimbabwe government to return
the rule of law to Zimbabwe. It is VERY important that the message contained in
this Bill gets sent loudly and clearly to the Zimbabwe government, through it
being passed into US law..
We strongly urge you to do
the following :
Contact the people listed below, who
are the members of the International Relations Committee of the US House of
Representatives, and its Africa Sub-Committee, expressing your wish that
they give serious consideration to The Zimbabwe Democracy Bill, and pass it into
law. Please send a copy of your message to us and we will ensure that it
reaches the legislators listed below.
This can be done by email or by
letter - but please keep the message polite, short, and to the point. Please
send letters or emails to as many of the people listed below as you are able.
The key people to send to are :
Congressman Benjamin J.
Gilman (Rep, NY) (Chairman of the House International Relations
Committee)
Edward R. Royce
(Rep, CA) (Chairman of the Africa Sub-Committee)
and the following members of the
Africa Sub-Committee:
Congressman Amo Houghton
(Rep,NY) Congressman Tom Campbell
(Rep,CA)
Congressman Steven J. Chabot
(Rep,OH) Congressman Tom Tancredo
(Rep,CO)
Congressman George P
Radanovich (Rep,CA) Congressman Donald M. Payne
(Dem,NJ)
Congressman Alcee L.
Hastings (Dem.FL) Congressman Gregory W.
Meeks (Dem,NY)
Congresswoman Barbara Lee
(CA)
Whoever you are, and
wherever you live, please express your sentiments to these legislators. US
citizens and residents are particularly urged to do so, especially to the
congressmen and women who represent your state or district.
Some suggestions for inclusion in
your message :
The period since the June elections
has been characterised by government-sponsored anarchy and lawlessness, just as
the pre-election period was - in the countryside as well as the towns and
cities.
The police and other bodies
responsible for the enforcement of Zimbabwe's laws are still not carrying out
their duty under the law to do so.
The result of this prolonged period
of lawlessness has been severe further weakening of Zimbabwe's economy, with
consequent hardship for Zimbabwe's population - particularly the poor.
In many areas of the country, the
lawlessness and anarchy prevents Zimbabweans from exercising their civil and
democratic rights to free assembly and free speech.
The address of the House
International Relations Committee and its members is as follows :
THE Government has gazetted
another 150 commercial farms for compulsory acquisition, bringing the total
number of identified farms to 2 102.
A preliminary notice published
today by the Minister of Lands and Agriculture, Dr Joseph Made, comes as the
Commercial Farmers' Union is preparing to take the Government to court over the
acquisitions.
Challenge
At its annual congress that ended in Harare yesterday, the CFU said it would
challenge the constitutionality of the compulsory farm acquisitions.
Owners or other interested parties of the farms in today's notice have been
given a month to respond.
The Government intends to acquire more than 3 000 farms to resettle 150 000
families through the fast-track resettlement programme.
HARARE -- In an increasingly haphazard and error-plagued land
reform programme, the government yesterday announced it would seize an
industrial site and a school for redistribution to poor black
farmers.
A gasoline depot owned by the state oil company is included
on the most recent list of properties targeted for confiscation by the
government under the programme, which aims to seize white-owned farms for
landless blacks.
A co-ed private high school with neat sports fields,
state-owned forests and land owned by the government's own railroad company and
the Mutare municipal council were among 150 new sites listed
yesterday.
The National Oil Company of Zimbabwe's storage and pipeline
facility outside the eastern border city of Mutare appeared on the list released
by Agriculture Minister Joseph Made.
A defunct oil refinery, shut down because it was too costly
to maintain, stands alongside huge gas tanks and the junction of a pipeline from
the Mozambique coast on 560 hectares at the property listed for
seizure.
The high school Lomagundi College, near Chinhoyi, 115km
northwest of here, educates the children of well-to-do blacks, who outnumber
white pupils, and is known for its sporting prowess.
Yesterday's list brought to 2076 the number of properties
named for confiscation since June 2. The government has said it would identify
3041 white-owned properties for nationalisation.
The almost weekly lists have been riddled with errors and
duplications.
Last month, black farm owners were named on the lists, by
mistake, Made said, and added those affected needed only report to district
officials to be excused.
But yesterday's list still included many blacks, among them
Philimon Machipisa, a wealthy businessman and former ruling party
lawmaker.
The list said he should forfeit two farms totalling 2000ha
near Chinhoyi.
The Commercial Farmers' Union, representing 4000 white
farmers, said official records showed Machipisa owned another 10 farms in the
same district amounting to another 14000ha, much of which lies idle.
The government insists it is only seizing underutilised
farms, those of absentee owners or farms next to peasant areas suitable for
cost-effective resettlement.
But the union said two successful vegetable producers north
of here on the list met none of those criteria.
Made boycotted a two-day union convention this week after the
organisation announced it would sue the government over land seizures it says
breach provisions of the government's own land reform law passed by the ruling
party in April. -- Sapa-AP
